Play Along
by cautiousAlbatross
Summary: Jake is on the receiving end of some unwanted attention, and is rescued by Dirk.


You've never been to a party before, but now you're in college, you felt like you really had to – at least once. Dirk doesn't agree, so you're here alone. Despite not knowing anyone here, you're finding it pretty fun. The music is loud and there's a lot of free alcohol, so you can talk loudly at anyone standing near you without having to worry about them actually listening to a word you say. It's an ideal situation, really. You've had more than a few drinks, but you're fairly certain you're not _too_ drunk. You're not falling over, after all – though you'll admit your ideas about drunkenness are a little sketchy, and mostly formed through watching movies.

You're a little surprised when a tall, muscular and very drunk woman comes over to you and starts a conversation, out of the blue.

"Hey," she says, leaning against the wall next to you, "You're pretty cute for a..."

Her voice trails off into a drunken mumble, and you nod nervously, giving her a small smile.

"Thanks," you say, trying to edge away as subtly as you can.

"So you wanna dance?" she asks, her words so slurred you can barely understand them.

"No, thank you," you say, with another nervous smile.

"Oh, come on," she says, grabbing your hand and pulling you towards the dance floor, "You jus' gotta dance!"

"No, I really don't want to," you reply, attempting to reclaim your hand.

She ignores your protests, and continues to beg you to dance with her. You can only understand about half of what she's saying.

"No, listen!" you say, trying desperately to think of some way to escape, "I can't dance right now... I have to... go... to the bathroom!"

You have to repeat yourself a couple of times, but finally she nods and releases your hand. With a relieved sigh, you head off towards the bathroom, only to grimace as she follows you, leaving you with no choice except to actually go inside. You lock yourself in, and contemplate just waiting there until the end of the party. Pulling out your phone, you see it's only just past midnight – so you'd be sitting here for a long time. You don't really think that's a good idea. Besides, she looked pretty strong – what if she broke in? You start to panic, flicking through your contacts, then pause on Dirk's name. Maybe he could help...

"Dirk, I need help!" you say, as soon as he picks up, "Please!"

"What is it?" he asks, sounding sleepy, and you feel a little bad for waking him up.

"I'm at the party- locked myself in the bathroom- hiding from a really, really scary-" you stumble over your words, not quite managing to finish each sentence, "You gotta come help me! Pretend to be my boyfriend or something! Just get me out of here!"

"Okay, I'll be there in a bit," he says, sounding considerably more awake, "I'll text you when I'm outside. Just go along with it, okay?"

You nod, then remember he can't see you, and say "Okay". He hangs up, and you sit there, staring at your phone, waiting for his text. It feels like an eternity before it comes.

_I'm here. Go downstairs. Play along._

You take a deep breath, steeling yourself, then unlock the door. She's still standing outside, and she doesn't look happy.

"Took your fucking time," she grumbles, pulling you towards her.

"Uh, yeah, sorry about that," you say, looking over her shoulder and hoping Dirk finds you soon.

"You can make it up to me," she says, her words running together, and you really don't like the look in her eyes.

She pushes you up against the wall, and you turn your head away, so her lips brush against your cheek. You scan the crowd, desperately searching, and finally spot Dirk, making his way towards you with a face like thunder. You grin, relieved, as you make eye contact (although you can never be sure, with his shades), and he walks a little faster. It only takes him a few seconds to reach you, and tap the woman on the shoulder. She turns around, irritated.

"What?" she asks, and you think she's probably glaring at him.

"I think you should know that he," he says, pointing at you, "Is my boyfriend. And I don't like to share."

She turns pale, but backs away. Dirk is taller than her, and his shades, although you think they're ridiculous, do make him look more intimidating than he really is. He stands there, expressionless, until she vanishes, then turns to you, a worried look coming onto his face.

"Are you okay?" he asks, resting one hand on your shoulder.

"Yeah," you say, nodding, although you still feel a little shaky.

"Come on," he says, wrapping his arm around your shoulder and leading you gently away, "Let's get you out of here."

"Okay."  
You let him guide you out to his car in silence, thinking about how glad you are to have such a good friend. You wish you had him around all the time. Maybe he could always pretend to be your boyfriend... Or maybe he should just be your boyfriend. That could be good, too.

He drives you home in silence, and every so often, you glance at him out of the corner of your eye, thinking about little things, like how nice it would be to kiss him.

"You sure you're okay?" he asks, as he pulls into your drive.

"Yeah," you say, staying where you are, not making a move to undo your seatbelt.

He stays silent, and you glance over at him, then stare down at your hands.

"Thanks," you say, flashing him a quick grin.

"It's all right," he says, smiling back at you.

You sit there in silence for a moment, then undo your seatbelt and let it rattle back, still not getting out of the car. You breathe in deeply, then exhale slowly and turn to face him.

"Really, thank you," you say, a slightly nervous smile on your face.

"You're welcome?" he says, and you think that if you could see his eyes, he'd look confused.

You hesitate a moment, then lean across and kiss him quickly, nearly missing his mouth. You pause there for a moment, then, embarrassed, turn and start fumbling with the door.

"Sorry," you mutter, finally managing to open it.

You try to leave, but he grabs your arm, stopping you.

"Don't be," he says, smiling.

Your eyes widen as he pulls you in and kisses you, and it takes you a moment to kiss him back. It barely lasts any time at all, and you pout a little when he pulls away, making him laugh.

"Go to bed," he says, pushing you towards the car door.

"Fine," you say, rolling your eyes, "See you tomorrow?"

"See you tomorrow."

You grin, and give him a little wave. He stays in your driveway until you're inside, and you lean against the door, still smiling, as you listen to him pull away. All things considered, that turned out a lot better than expected.


End file.
